On December 12, Friday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky announced a video message on his Telegram channel, standing beside the stele at the entrance to the city of Kupyansk in the Kharkiv region. The President stated that he arrived to personally congratulate the fighters on their successful military operations.
Zelensky said: “Today—Kupyansk direction, where our fighters are achieving results for Ukraine. The Russians have spoken a lot about Kupyansk—we see it. I came, congratulated the guys.”
Russian group surrounded
Earlier that day, the Ukrainian Defense Forces successfully conducted a counteroffensive around Kupyansk, encircling the Russian group stationed in the city. This was reported by “Ukrainska Pravda,” referencing both the command of the National Guard’s “Khartia” search and strike group’s 2nd corps and the maps provided by the DeepState OSINT project.
The commander of the “Khartia” 2nd corps, Ihor Obolensky, commented on the situation as follows:
“The task was to enter the city and clear it of Russians. We worked in 2–3 directions simultaneously, cutting off their logistics. Today, we can confidently say that the Russians in the city are fully isolated. They are just beginning to realize they are encircled.”
Liberated territories
According to the information provided by the “Khartia” 2nd corps:
- The village of Kondrashovka and its surrounding areas, including forests, have been fully liberated.
- The “Khartia” 13th Brigade has entirely freed the village of Radkovka and its surroundings.
- They have also driven the enemy out of several dozen houses in the northern part of Kupyansk itself.
Obolensky added that the Russian Armed Forces are now deploying all their reserves in an attempt to break through the defense, but these attempts are being neutralized. Additionally, the battles have involved numerous foreign fighters from Syria and African countries.
Casualties and losses in the battle
According to data from the National Guard’s 2nd corps, several months ago, Russian forces advanced 6 kilometers beyond the Oskol River, but from September 22 to December 12, the “Khartia” units inflicted significant losses on Russian forces:
- Eliminated personnel: 1,027 Russian military members.
- Wounded: 291.
- Prisoners taken: 13 “occupants.”
The command indicated that battles are still ongoing in the city center, but Kupyansk is expected to be completely liberated soon.
The DeepState OSINT project map also confirmed that the entire northwestern outskirts of Kupyansk have been cleared of Russian forces.
Read “Zamin” on Telegram!
Users of Меҳмон are not allowed to comment this publication.
